Greenland's ice retreat: 13 years of melt captured from space
A new recording, based on satellite data from NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA), shows that Greenland's ice sheet melted for 13 years. The study, published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, revealed that from 2010 to 2023, Greenland lost approximately 2,340 cubic kilometres of ice, which is roughly equivalent to the volume of Lake Victoria, the largest lake in Africa.
The data indicate that the ice sheet's edges are melting significantly faster than its centre, especially where glaciers flow into the sea. According to Live Science, the average ice thickness loss was about 1.2 metres, but in some areas, such as the Zachariae Isstrøm glacier, a loss of up to 75 metres was recorded. Additionally, satellite images show that most ice loss occurs when glaciers meet the ocean. Red areas on the visualization depict the greatest losses, which can be viewed below:
Greenland melting
Researchers from Northumbria University conducted the study, which was published in Geophysical Research Letters. It aimed to measure ice loss and compare results obtained by two satellites: CryoSat-2 from ESA and ICESat-2 from NASA. CryoSat-2 uses radar to measure the Earth's surface height, while ICESat-2 uses laser technology. Both satellites monitor changes in Greenland's ice sheet thickness.
The data comparison showed that the measurements from both satellites differed by only 3%, confirming their high accuracy and the possibility of combining results, as highlighted by Live Science. Since 2020, both satellites have been moving along the same orbits, synchronizing their observations.
Greenland's ice sheet has been losing mass since 1998 and is currently the second-largest factor contributing to rising sea levels worldwide. Researchers noted that the worst situation occurred in 2019 and 2021 when Greenland experienced exceptionally warm summers, resulting in the ice sheet losing an average of over 400 cubic kilometres of its volume annually.
Thorsten Markus, a NASA scientist responsible for the ICESat-2 mission, emphasized in a statement: "It is great to see that the data from sister missions' are providing a consistent picture of the changes going on in Greenland. Understanding the similarities and differences between radar and lidar ice sheet height measurements allow us to fully exploit the complementary nature of those satellite missions. Studies like this are critical to put a comprehensive time series of the ICESat, CryoSat-2, ICESat-2, and, in the future, CRISTAL missions together."
The research results are extremely useful because the loss of ice sheet mass is a crucial factor contributing to the global rise in sea levels. In the future, satellite data may play a significant role in preparing for and adapting to the impacts of climate change.
